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Jan 7, 2021 23:06:40 GMT -6
Post by meskie on Jan 7, 2021 23:06:40 GMT -6
So far January has been warmer than October was so it seems lol. Last few weeks been nice. Had some real nasty shit early on including heavy dumps of snow. Hardly any snow left here in open, almost bare ground in places particularly summerfallow ect. Yard and more is absolutely a skating rink, so icy, with my bad knee makes for even more difficult walking lol. Having trouble in places pulling the silage wagon with the big MFWD, never mind scratching to get up the hills, oh my, four wheel drift coming back down, almost to the point of having the put on the chains lol We have a pile of sand/gravel that we have to spread on our hill going to our pit and up to a couple of pens or we wouldn't be able to pull the silage wagon around. The sand/gravel isn't good for anything else but it works good for traction. Too corse for sand and it's got too much fines in it for gravel. |
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Post by SWMan on Jan 8, 2021 1:04:03 GMT -6
Best winter I can remember here. I agree with AB that some of our coldest weather was in October. Getting lots of projects done and even still playing in the dirt as recently as a couple weeks ago. Had to clear one snowdrift from in front of the shed so far because of wind and that's it. Just this evening I called the kids outside to listen to the B52's flying over on way back to Minot AFB and my 10 year old was wearing shorts and he said he wasn't even cold...ha ha. This supposed to be coldest part of the year! I feel like we will pay for this eventually because things always seem to average out, but it can't be taken away now.  |
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Weather
Jan 8, 2021 6:20:28 GMT -6
via mobile
Post by slipclutch on Jan 8, 2021 6:20:28 GMT -6
If this is global worming. Bring it on. Lol. But yes swman we will pay big time! 😕
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Post by kevlar on Jan 8, 2021 8:25:10 GMT -6
I look at it the other way, we have already paid for this weather. The bad weather we had a couple years ago for harvest, then flooding this summer. Just being the optimist!!
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Post by meskie on Jan 8, 2021 8:51:46 GMT -6
Every day it’s nice is one less day of winter that can be cold and miserable.
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Jan 8, 2021 18:53:31 GMT -6
Post by Albertabuck on Jan 8, 2021 18:53:31 GMT -6
So far January has been warmer than October was so it seems lol. Last few weeks been nice. Had some real nasty shit early on including heavy dumps of snow. Hardly any snow left here in open, almost bare ground in places particularly summerfallow ect. Yard and more is absolutely a skating rink, so icy, with my bad knee makes for even more difficult walking lol. Having trouble in places pulling the silage wagon with the big MFWD, never mind scratching to get up the hills, oh my, four wheel drift coming back down, almost to the point of having the put on the chains lol We have a pile of sand/gravel that we have to spread on our hill going to our pit and up to a couple of pens or we wouldn't be able to pull the silage wagon around. The sand/gravel isn't good for anything else but it works good for traction. Too corse for sand and it's got too much fines in it for gravel. I'm sitting on a couple hundred acres of that kind of material up to six feet deep. Combination of small rock, very coarse sand and a bit of silt, more closely resembles reject sand than gravel, but its coarse enough and enough rock that used properly it can be used as a substitute for gravel. It needs some patience and you gotta have drainage and a clay base under it. Water logged it can resemble quick sand when loose, but get it packed down and the water carries the silt to the bottom, takes about a year, she sets up solid. My yard I can drive across it with anything loaded to the nuts when its soft elsewhere, narry an issue. After a hard rain, you could almost walk across the yard in your socks and not get your feet wet. Shortage of decent gravel in this area, on my one quarter there is the reminents of two old municipal surface pits, cows play in them now, they are a mess, but many of the local roads were graveled from them back in late 50s early 60s. I sell some myself, have a truck with 15 ft box and little tandem belly dump for spreading. |
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Jan 25, 2021 22:11:32 GMT -6
Post by kevlar on Jan 25, 2021 22:11:32 GMT -6
Ugghhhhh, where did the nice weather go?  ? I was getting quite used to that -5 stuff every day. Calling for -35 tonight and tomorrow night, hits hard when you haven't climatized to it at all! And of course, there is 4 trucks coming to load grain tomorrow. |
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Jan 25, 2021 22:15:04 GMT -6
via mobile
Post by shmiffy on Jan 25, 2021 22:15:04 GMT -6
And it’s windy to boot. Definitely spoiled a guy up till now.
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Jan 26, 2021 12:33:35 GMT -6
Post by Albertabuck on Jan 26, 2021 12:33:35 GMT -6
Been hitting the lower minus 20s here, 30 something one nite, but virtually constant varying speed wind from SE, and even when light, f'k me that gets cold, worst was last nite after dark, that was beyond brisk. Temps are ok, but the wind puts it over the top along with the daily snowfall. That constant dusting to inch of snow every day is a PITA when the silage don't all get eaten in the bunks and troughs, never mind the silage itself freezes up some, kind of gets chunky but still chewable, but with that snow added in it literally becomes concrete after they eat the loose stuff on top and pack it with their noses. Good workout going with a fork and breaking it all loose, gotta becareful don't pry too much with the fork, bend the bloody tines it gets so hard lol.
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Jan 26, 2021 12:40:38 GMT -6
via mobile
Post by meskie on Jan 26, 2021 12:40:38 GMT -6
It was -38 here yesterday morning and only -33 this morning. At least we haven’t had any wind to go along with it. The air pressure must be changing as the tractor exhaust isn’t going straight up and hanging around like it was the couple days before. We were supposed to haul grain yesterday but our truck had other plans. Well the batteries did anyway.
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Jan 26, 2021 20:07:32 GMT -6
Post by northernfarmer on Jan 26, 2021 20:07:32 GMT -6
It was -38 here yesterday morning and only -33 this morning. At least we haven’t had any wind to go along with it. The air pressure must be changing as the tractor exhaust isn’t going straight up and hanging around like it was the couple days before. We were supposed to haul grain yesterday but our truck had other plans. Well the batteries did anyway. Its been generally well above normal temps the last while up until recently around the Peace area of Alberta but was down to -20 last night and forecast for possible -30 in a couple of days. Everyone's grain hauling setup would be a bit different in what system is used to load with and where the truck sits when its not running but I know for myself it all sits outside and once the temp gets down to -20 its a struggle and below that is all down hill fast. Very hard on equipment in my estimation even if it will run and I mean by plugging it in and still not kind to an engine, hard on drivelines, the auger and so on, never mind trying to start an engine that has the wrong grade of oil and its not been plugged in, guys have turned crank bearings pulling stunts like that. Unless a truck has really good batteries and battery insulation etc it can get so bad that the batteries won't take a charge all day with the engine running as they can't warm up with the wind chill effect of driving on some trucks anyway or if its been sitting the batteries are cold soaked and are so useless to put out the power they could if they were warmed up some.
I don't know if you or anyone else on here ever watches some of the more well known farm youtubers but I just shake my head at some of the antics certain ones do time after time ( south of Alberta in northern Montana without naming the youtube channel ) with walking to the cold shed or a truck that was loaded the evening before and sitting outside and nope, never plugging in any trucks or tractors most of the time and cranking and boosting and when they do start you wonder when the connecting rods will fly out the side of the block. Maybe its good for views to create drama where there need not be any or something along those lines but anyone that has a brain in their head who lives in the north asks them in comments as to why they are not plugging anything in, don't they have block heaters, etc. I think some of these odd practices come from generations doing a certain thing and the next generation doesn't seem to clue into the fact that their dad is doing something that maybe isn't the smartest.
I know I am coming a cross somewhat harsh but for instance years ago I was on a brushing crew for a couple of winters and watched one cat operator pouring the starting fluid to his crawler because it turned colder ( I believe it had a cummins ) and he either bent push rods or bent a connecting rod and had to have it hauled away, that sure wasn't making him money. The next guy had a coolant flow system on his diesel pickup and every morning connected it up and let that flow to warm his cat ( not the best on the pickup engine though long term ) and he was with us the rest of the winter, never saw the other guy again. I don't thing diesel coolant heaters had come out then in that era.
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Post by meskie on Jan 26, 2021 20:20:46 GMT -6
Guys that purposely cold start an engine are stupid. I used to plug my half ton in if it was gonna get below -5. Generally we don’t have any trouble getting things started we use block and oil pan heaters on our trucks and a webasto. The one that had trouble was a newish to us truck and batteries were weak apparently. We try not to haul when it’s cold but sometimes it needs to be done.
It has been a lot above seasonal till a few days ago. Supposed to get to about average temps next couple of days which will be nice.
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Post by northernfarmer on Jan 26, 2021 20:38:19 GMT -6
I added some more random comments to my last post after you had read it but for sure there are times one gets shoved into a corner and have to do things that one doesn't want to do but your doing the best you can with the tools you have vs trying to start engines that were never meant to be started that cold ( with no heating aids ) . Batteries sure can be a bastard though, either all on the weak side but were fine when it was better weather and then fall flat on their face when it gets colder, or that one battery that is drawing the rest down and not like one realizes its happening or which one is the issue. The other issue I run into and this seems to be a constant maintenance thing is with group 31 top stud batteries some have this habit of the nut tension easing off, I am told some of it could be due to vibration but the gist is that I check the nuts every once in a while and most often some are loosening up and have to tension them up again and on one truck I was having slow cranking happen during a fall and it was only a few months after I had changed the starter with its two relays as a kit, the firewall relay, the batteries etc and wondered what was up. Turned out just to be loose battery connections and all of them loosened up, have tightened them up a couple of times since. Maybe battery brand has something to do with it as well.
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Post by bobofthenorth on Jan 26, 2021 21:39:26 GMT -6
Guys that purposely cold start an engine are stupid. I used to plug my half ton in if it was gonna get below -5.
What he said. If somebody is telling me how amazing his vehicle is for cold starting I just assume I'm listening to an idiot and stop. I don't like starting a diesel in cold weather ... period. But some times its essential and when that happens I'll do everything possible to make its life easier and longer.
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Weather
Jan 26, 2021 22:18:00 GMT -6
Post by Oatking on Jan 26, 2021 22:18:00 GMT -6
I really like my webasto heaters . too cold to haul grain at minus 30celcuis. more trouble than good. It would be interesting to actually cost out what minus 30 grain hauling costs compared to normal above zero weather. Ever have rads freeze up and crack?
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? I was getting quite used to that -5 stuff every day. Calling for -35 tonight and tomorrow night, hits hard when you haven't climatized to it at all! And of course, there is 4 trucks coming to load grain tomorrow.
